Power-transmission mechanism



July 6 1926. 1,591,471

G CONSTANTINESCO PQWER TRANSMISSION MECHANISM Ormgmal Flled July 25, 1923 five/77711:

Patented July 6, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE GONSTANTINESCO,

or WEYBRIDGE, ENGLAND.

POWER-TRANSMISSION MECHANISM- Original app'lication filed July 25, 1923, Serial No. 653,775, and in Great Britain September 16, 1822. Divided and this application filed Kay 21, 1925. Serial No. 31,966.

In my prior United States Patent No. 1,542,668, a power transmission device is described in which reciprocating motion derived from a prime mover is divided between an oscillating mass and reciprocating devices which give unidirectional motion to a rotor, the oscillations or reciprocations of all the parts being of the same frequency. The

amplitudes, however, of those of the oscillating mass and the unidirectional driving device bear to one another a ratio which is greater or less according as the opposing torque on the rotor is greater or less. In In former specification aforesaid the inertia mass was solid; according to my present invention it is liquid.

Figure 1 illustrates my invention, and Figure 2 is an additional detail,

In the formof the invention shown in Figure 1 the driving crank b of theprime mover, the flywheel of which is shown in dotted lines, is connected by rods 0 d with pistons e f working in cylinders g h. The cylinders h are interconnected by a pipe 21 containing the liquid which forms the inertial mass. They are also provided with suction valves 70 and 1 leading to a source of supply, but liquid enters through these valves only sufiicient to make up for leakage since no liquid is actually pumped. The plylinders g h are also connected with cyliners 31, 32, provided with pistons 33, 34, which actuate a lever 35 pivoted at 36 by means of rods- The lever 1s connected to a pair of rods 37 and 38, which actuate unidirectional driving devices operatingon a rotor 39 pivoted at 40.

This a plication is particularly suitable "for cases in which the prime mover is a-machine giving a constant torque, but capable of variation of speed between certain limits. Variation of speed between these limits. will produce considerable variation of pressure at the'delivery of the cylinders. The appa- I ratus is thus extremely suitablefor. traction purposes of vehicles; for example, in a traction engine an internal combustion engine may be provided driving the pistons c, f,

, the two cylinders g, h being connected to the tidouble opposed pistons or double acting piston driving a ratchet motor as above de- The action is in all cases the same as that described in my prior specification above re- .ferred to. If, for instance, the torque on the rotor is so great that it cannot move, the pistons 33 and 34 remain stationary, and

the whole motion of the prime mover is taken up in causing liquid to surge back-' wards and forwards in the pipe 21. If the torque is zero liquid in this pipe has little or no motion on account of its inertia, and all the motion of the prime mover is communicated to the unidirectional driving devices.

Intermediate torques produce intermediate effects; the greater the torque on the rotor,

the greater the surging in the pipe 21 and the less the movement of the driving devices;

The pipe 64 is embraced by a socket 67 con- I nected to a rod 68 which can be raised or lowered by turning the nut 69 by means of the handle 7 O. The branches 62 and 63 can be connected up to any point of the pipe 21 by passages 60 and 61. 7 With this device the inertia of the liquid column can be increased 06 decreased by merel 7 to raise or .lower t e U-shaped pipe 64.

A variable inertia device of the pipe type may be obtained by using telescopic tubes whichwill permit the length of liquid column to be lengthened or shortened. By using variable inertia devices as above detorque comprising in combination a steadily rotating driving shaft, means for deriving alternating motion from said-shaft, means for splitting such motion into two components, a liquid mass, means for transmitting one of said component motions to. said'mass, unidirectional driv ng mechanism operatmg upon the said driven shaft, and means turning the handle v scribed, the maximum pressures 1n the sysfor transmitting the other of the component motions to the said unidirectional driving I has to be rotated against a variable resisting torque, comprising in combination a steadily rotating driving shaft, means for deriving alternating motion from said shaft, means for splittlng ponents, a hquid mass, means for transmitting one of said com onent motions to said mass, unidirectional riving mechanism giv ing at least two impulses in the same direction on said driven shaft for each revolution of said steadily rotating shaft, and means for transmitting the other of the comnent motions to the said unidirectional iving mechanism. a

3. An automatic variable speed ear for transmitting power to a driven sha which has to be rotated against a variable resist ing torque, comprising in combination a driving crank, a liquid mass capable of oscillation, a pair 0 unidirectional driving devices adapted to drive a driven shaft a1- ternately in the same direction, and means for splitting the motion of the said driving such motion into two comcrank between the, said oscillating liquid mass and said unidirectional driving devices.

4. An automatic variable speed gear for transmitting power from a steadily rotating drivin shaft to a shaft which has to be rotate against a variable resisting torque, comprisin in combination a crank on said drivlng siaft, a pair of liquid containing 0 lin'ders o positely disposed with respect to t e said rlving shaft, a pair of pistons actuated in opposite phase by the said crank, and workin in the said c linders, a pipe connecting t e ends of sai cylinders, said pipe containing fluid capable of oscillation therein, a second pair of cylinders freely communicating with the first named pair of cylinders-each to each, pistons in the said second pair of cylinders subject to fluid pressure generated in the first pair, a rotor, and a pair of unidirectional driving devices operatively connected with the second pair of pistons and actuating the rotor.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed by name this eighth day of May, 1925.

GEORGE CONSTANTINESOO. 

